


A Tempting Thought

by AemiliaFawn



Series: Malec Drabbles & Oneshots [15]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Magnus takes care of Alec, Sickfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-27
Updated: 2019-09-27
Packaged: 2020-10-29 13:49:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20797634
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AemiliaFawn/pseuds/AemiliaFawn
Summary: As soon as Magnus noticed Alec was sick, he instantly brought him home to take care of him. Though Alec still had far too much work to do, he couldn't find it in himself to reject his boyfriend's loving attention.





	A Tempting Thought

**A Tempting Thought**

  
Alec was getting sick.

He felt the first signs of it when he laid awake in bed at night at the Institute, sweating and aching everywhere and thinking to himself that he would actually prefer a few aching, bruised ribs over having to gasp for air whenever he did manage to fall asleep because he couldn't breathe through his runny nose, and he knew it wasn't just a common cold when he narrowly avoided throwing up all over Raj during a rather heated argument at a meeting. The Institute had been stretching him thin for days now and Alec wasn't sure if it had been plain stress, his poor eating habits (he simply hadn't had the _time_) or something in the air, but fact remained that his sight was blurry, he barely kept any food down and he couldn't focus on anything without making his persistent throbbing head ache worse.

You'd think his runes would help him out somewhat, and in a way you're right - they kept him going for as long as they were activated. As soon as they started wearing off, things seemed to get a lot worse all over again so Alec just stopped bothering with them altogether and decided to let his body recover the Mundane way. This might have been a bad idea.

The result of his inability to focus because of all this was the stack of paperwork in front of him – something he would have finished hours ago had he not had the mental capacity of a hamster at the moment. He'd overestimated his abilities severely when he had set the goal to himself to finish it all and had expected to be done in no less than two hours at most.

It's been four now. He kept re-reading the same words of the same reports and none of them really sunk into his skull. He might as well had been reading a strange scripture in a foreign language.

There was a curt buzz in his pocket and Alec sighed with apprehension, relaxing when he saw Magnus' name on his screen.

_I know you're busy, but I miss you terribly,_ the text read, and the corner of Alec's mouth kicked up. He had been neglecting his boyfriend these past days – all their plans had had to be canceled because Alec had to focus on his job and taking care of the influx of demon activity in the city. Magnus had been understanding, as always, but it irked Alec that he couldn't spend more time with him. Magnus was a huge source of positivity in his life and Alec could definitely use a dose of optimism right now.

_Not as much as I miss you,_ Alec replied. He set his phone down and rubbed at his eyes – it was no use, these reports weren't getting done today.

His phone started buzzing again and this time it was a phone call. Alec blindly picked it up.

“Hey,” he greeted, already knowing who it was. He could practically feel Magnus smile and it warmed his heart a little. “What's up?”

_“Not much, I just thought I'd check up on the most handsome Shadowhunter I've ever had the pleasure of meeting,”_ Magnus stated airily. Alec turned his head to the side and coughed into the crook of his elbow, trying to stiffle the sound of it, but he knew Magnus heard it anyway when Magnus asked a soft, _“Alexander?”._

“ 'M fine,” Alec argued, voice hoarse and throat sore.

“You don't sound fine,” Magnus pressed. Alec sighed again. Bad idea, picking up the phone. He couldn't hide anything from his boyfriend.

“I don't know. Just a cold – or something.”

“Come outside for a little bit. Wear a jacket, for God's sake,” Magnus added, as if in an afterthought.

“Magnus -”

Alec was a little miffed when Magnus just hung up, leaving him no choice but to leave his office and head outside for him. It was cold outside for this time of year – Alec wrapped his arms around his chest as he waited for the familiar crackle of a portal opening. It came about a 10 seconds later and there Magnus was, just a few feet away from him. Beautiful as ever.

Alec felt a strange sense of relief wash over him as he gazed upon Magnus, as though just his boyfriend's presence was enough to soothe him. Whenever he was without Magnus it always felt like something was missing.

“Oh, Alexander,” Magnus said as he started approaching Alec, worry on his darling face. He touched Alec's forehead as soon as he was close enough to do so. “I _knew_ it wasn't just a cold. You're burning up.”

In spite of the fact that Alec couldn't help but press his cheek a little more into Magnus' cold palm, Alec argued a soft, “I still got work to do, I'll try to get some sleep later.”

“Is it a matter of life and death?” Magnus questioned. One of his eyebrows was rising as if he was thinking to himself that Alec was being rather obtuse when it came to his own health, though thankfully he didn't voice his opinions. Standing here in the darkness close to the man he loved with the scent of petrichor still clinging to the grass beneath their feet from the earlier rain, Alec knew there was no possible way he would ever be able to go back inside and continue slaving away at his desk. And he also knew what Magnus was truly asking.

_Is there any true reason why I shouldn't just drag you back home with me?_

Alec supposed there wasn't. He had given everyone their orders - he had a phone on him, and he had locked the door to his office. If anyone needed him then they knew where to reach him.

“...No,” Alec answered reluctantly, still having trouble with drawing a line between work and personal life when for such a long time, his work had been his personal life as well. After having met Magnus he had long since discovered that there was more to life than pleasing and serving the Clave and killing demons. One of those things happened to be self-care and enjoying being loved.

“Then you're coming home with me,” Magnus decided, leaving little space for Alec to argue. Alec heaved out a sigh when Magnus' palm slid from his cheek to his chin, tipping it up a little so Alec would stop staring dizzily at their feet and into Magnus' eyes instead. “Let's go grab your things.”

Alec should argue, truly. This paperwork needed to be done and sent out by Monday.

“I got everything I need right here,” Alec answered truthfully instead. Magnus did that thing with his face where he looked at Alec like he had hung the moon and the stars in the sky, like he was the answer to all his questions, and it made Alec smile tiredly. He pressed a kiss against Magnus' temple and let Magnus lead him through the portal.

When he arrived at Magnus' loft, he was leaning heavily into the warlock. The travel made him feel sick and he was swallowing bile as Magnus led him to the bedroom, where Alec sunk down onto the bed in a miserable heap and rubbed his temples. A terrible throbbing sensation went through his skull, and he felt as though his brain had swollen twice its size and was trying to break its way free, pop straight through the top of his head and -

"Headache?" Magnus asked knowingly. Alec hummed nonsensically. He didn't think voicing his thoughts on how his brain might explode through his skull would be a very sexy thing to do so he just kept that to himself.

"The worst," he agreed plainly with a wince instead. He hadn't had this kind of headache in a long time but then again, he hadn't had a day quite as terrible as this one either. What else had he expected?

The bed dipped with Magnus' weight as he too sat down, his shoes kicked off somewhere along the way.

"Come here."

Magnus patted his thigh in a silent invitation and Alec dropped his hands from his head.

"Magnus – I don't think I can -"

"Seeing you suffer doesn't exactly turn me on, Alexander. I just want you to lay down. Put your head in my lap."

Alec sighed and eased his body down, back of his head pressing down into the soft flesh of Magnus' thigh. Magnus almost instantly started running his hands through Alec's messy hair and Alec felt his eyes slide shut.

"'s nice," Alec murmured absentmindedly as Magnus' nails scraped ever so gently over his scalp.

"Just a cold, huh?"

"Mhm," Alec hummed, not really willing to talk or think about it. He just wanted to focus on Magnus, and the gentle pulses of magic he was sending through Alec's skull to ease his pain. Magnus' magic felt cool, the way Alec needed it to be. "That's all."

"I know better than to poke a stubborn, ill-tempered Shadowhunter. No matter how cute this particular one looks," Magnus teased.

All he got for his efforts was another exhausted grunt. His fingers were now rubbing circles into Alec's temples. Alec slowly felt his frown ease again, his body too. He knew that if he asked, Magnus would happily massage the rest of him too. Maybe later. It was a tempting thought.

"'M not cute," Alec slurred when he gave Magnus' words more thought.

"No. Not at all," Magnus sarcastically drawled. "You are a fearsome Shadowhunter, a seasoned warrior - who absolutely does not blush when I do this."

Magnus' magic slid down Alec's body - although there was no hand, there was suddenly the touch of it slowly sliding over Alec's thigh, close to his crotch in a way that made Alec jolt.

"Magnus," Alec huffed, utterly scandalized. Magnus chuckled.

"I love how sensitive you are," Magnus purred. He pressed a soft kiss against Alec's forehead. "You know, I can think of at least 10 different, fun ways to alleviate that headache of yours. You wouldn't even have to lift a finger."

Alec opened his mouth to answer, but he was sent straight into a coughing fit and the playfulness on Magnus' face made place for worry – as Alec curled in on himself, trying to regain control of his breathing and just stop coughing already, Magnus summoned a cup of tea with honey.

“Careful, that's hot,” Magnus warned when Alec reached for it, to which Alec said (in a poor attempt to lift that frown off Magnus' face),_ “After meeting you I should be used to hot things, right?”._

The tea burned his lips only a little, and soothed his sore throat wonderfully. Magnus' hand was still absentmindedly stroking through his hair while he drank it all down. When Magnus snapped his fingers Alec looked down and discovered himself already clad in a comfortable t-shirt and a soft pair of worn sweats. He would have reprimanded Magnus over it normally, Alec wasn't a child who needed help getting dressed after all, but right now he could appreciate the effort because he wasn't sure he would have remembered even kicking off his dirty boots before crawling into bed otherwise. Lying on his side still after his coughing fit, pressed his forehead into Magnus' lower abdomen and thought that he could sleep just like this.

“I'm holding you hostage until you feel better, Institute be damned,” Magnus decided right then and there. Alec snorted.

“You know you can't do that,” Alec murmured into Magnus' stomach. Although he still felt like actual death, being in bed with Magnus made it a little more bearable, as opposed to that desk he'd been slouched over tonight.

“Watch me.”

“Always watching you. You're too beautiful for your own good.”

It was out before Alec could catch himself. He felt a wave of embarrassment go through him, though he didn't waver when Magnus sought out eye contact. Magnus smiled.

“As are you. Even if you are a snotcovered little ball of grumpiness.”

Alec rolled his eyes as Magnus kissed him on the forehead.

“Get some sleep. I'll take care of you.”

“Mhm,” Alec hummed again, already drifting off. Magnus kept sending soothing pulses of magic through him – a massage from the inside out, almost, and it made Alec feel so safe.

Not because he knew the magic was battling the virus that he had caught, but rather because Magnus was there for him.

He always was, and that was all Alec could ever ask for.


End file.
